The likelihood that some American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) green building projects would fail should not come as a surprise to Green Building Law Update readers. Back in February 2009, I wrote about the the difficulties of administering the stimulus funds at state, county and municipal levels. In January 2010, I highlighted initial problems … Continue Reading
I have previously written about informal complaints regarding the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Star Program for appliances. Based on recent findings of a Government Accountability Office report, it seems much larger systemic problems exist within the Program: "In a nine-month study, four fictitious companies invented by the accountability office … Continue Reading
Back in January 2010, I said this: "Government officials and citizens are going to expect results form the significant investments in the green movement (particularly in an election year). In 2010, the nation will begin to decide if investments in the green building and renewable energy industries were worth it." Not one month later, it … Continue Reading
When you think of green energy projects, what sort of results do you anticipate? New energy sources? Reduced energy costs? Green jobs? What about earthquakes? Geothermal energy, a widely-touted green energy source, involves drilling miles-deep wells into underground reservoirs in order to tap steam and hot water that can be used for energy applications. I … Continue Reading
The Department of Energy will remain busy in 2010 with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act projects. In addition to $3.1 billion for the State Energy Program, the DOE is also responsible for $5 billion distributed to states for the weatherization of homes. One state has already come under criticism for management of its weatherization … Continue Reading
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) included $250 million for a "RAT" board (pdf) established to audit and investigate stimulus-funded programs and projects. In addition, states have established their own auditing programs. These auditing programs have started to reveal some problems with ARRA green building programs (subscrip. req.). The Department of Energy … Continue Reading
It’s always amazing to me the unexpected consequences that result from apparently benign activities. As new green building and energy innovations and materials are incorporated into projects, there is always the possibility of an unexpected consequence. Take for instance a geothermal energy project in California. Geothermal projects involve mile-or-more-deep wells drilled into underground reservoirs to tap … Continue Reading
Note: Don’t forget to register for Green Building Law Update’s Birthday Happy Hour This week we will be taking a look at green building and renewable energy funding available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. While the opening of the stimulus spigots has been slow, there has been a noticeable uptick in news the … Continue Reading
Back on February 20, 2009, I said the following about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: While Republicans, Democrats and the President argued over the stimulus package for weeks, the real battle may arise when state agencies and officials attempt to divide up the stimulus funding and choose the projects that receive funding. The real … Continue Reading
[Sometimes, it’s better not to reinvent the wheel. As I was preparing this week’s posts, I came across Lane Burt’s analysis of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) stimulus funding. Lane, an NRDC Policy Analyst, agreed to let me use his post today. Check out Lane’s blog – it’s a great resource for energy policy analysis.] … Continue Reading
While the General Services Administration announced stimulus projects last week, they have no time to rest. In fact, choosing the stimulus projects may have been the easiest part of the process. The next step is contract procurement and administration. Due to staffing vacancies at the GSA, the administration process may prove difficult : "Meanwhile, the … Continue Reading
